Food and drink consumed by an animal - just the opposite (7)
I believe the answer is:
cassava
'food' is the definition.
(type of vegetable)
I can't explain the remainder of the clue.
(Other definitions for cassava that I've seen before include "Plant yielding starch" , "Tropical American starchy plant" , "Tropical food" , "starchy food" , "Root crop of the tropics" .)